Electronic modules, such as electronic or optoelectronic transceiver or transponder modules, are increasingly used in electronic and optoelectronic communication. Electronic modules typically communicate with a host device by transmitting electrical signals to the host device and receiving electrical signals from the host device. These electrical signals can then be transmitted by the electronic module outside the host device as optical and/or electrical signals.
Some electronic modules include multiple integrated circuits (ICs) for optimizing the performance of internal components, such as transmitters and receivers, for example. One difficulty with the inclusion of multiple ICs is communication between the ICs and between one or more controllers of the electronic modules. In particular, it can be difficult to uniquely identify each individual IC in order to target a communication to a particular IC.
Past attempts to uniquely identify individual ICs have involved hardwiring unique identifiers into an IC using non-volatile memory or fuses, integrating a separate controller into each IC, or having a separate communication bus for each IC. Unfortunately, these solutions are difficult to design and involve extra manufacturing and operating expense.